Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce declined to comment Friday on whether he will be returning to the NFL in 2026.
Kelce was asked about his NFL future five days after the Chiefs were eliminated from playoff contention, while losing Patrick Mahomes to a torn ACL, in a Week 15 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers.
“I’d rather just keep the focus of the media and everything on this team, right now,” Kelce answered. “All the conversations that I have with the team, and everything moving forward, will be with them. I think it’s a unique time in my life, and unfortunately, I’ve got three games left and I know when the season ends this year. Typically, we go into it, and we don’t know when it’s going to end, and that’s the beauty of it.
“Just trying to make sure that everybody here knows that I’m focused on trying to win football games, these last three games.”
After a Sunday matchup at the Tennessee Titans, the Chiefs are set to wrap up the 2025 season with a Christmas Day home game against the Denver Broncos followed by a Jan. 4 matchup at the Las Vegas Raiders.
Kelce is currently set to hit unrestricted free agency after his two-year, $34.25 million deal with the Chiefs expires following the season.
Mahomes underwent surgery on his knee injury less than 24 hours after suffering the injury, according to the team.
Chiefs vice president of sports medicine and performance Rick Burkholder said Wednesday that quick turnaround means there is a possibility Mahomes will recover in time for Week 1 of the 2026 campaign.
Burkholder noted, however, that Mahomes’ recovery timeline could vary anywhere from seven to 11 months.
That opens up the possibility Kelce, should he re-sign with the Chiefs, would be starting out his 14th NFL season without his star quarterback.
Kelce, who will turn 37 next October, has marked a few notable off-field milestones in the last few years including a deal for his New Heights podcast reportedly worth more than $100 million and his engagement to Taylor Swift.
Jason Kelce, who retired from the NFL after the 2023 season and co-hosts New Heights, recently said on a Monday Night Football broadcast he felt his brother needed to “step away from the game for a little bit” in order to decide on his retirement.
“It will come to you with time… Right now, it’s just too fresh,” Kelce said, per USA Today’s Jack McKessy. “You gotta step away from it, you gotta think about it, and then it’ll come to you.”
Kelce has recorded 67 catches for 797 receiving yards and five receiving touchdowns through 14 games this season. He’ll be working with backup quarterback Gardner Minshew when the Chiefs kick off Week 16 against the Tennessee Titans.